A surprising city, to discover by foot

An excursion on land will give you the opportunity to visit the Hanseatic quarter, where you find the oldest buildings in Bergen, built along the Bryggen docks, one of the most active and lively parts of town. Included by UNESCO amongst the world heritage sites, this quarter has preserved the old buildings of the port, and is, with its narrow alleys and dark, open galleries, one of the best preserved Medieval boroughs of the country.

A vacation in Norway with an MSC cruise will give you the opportunity to explore this fascinating land. A visit to the Hanseatic Museum and the Schøtstuene, the merchant navy league assembly will help you get to better know this intriguing town.

Håkon Hall in the royal palace built by King Håkon Håkonsson in the mid-14th century and the adjacent Rosenkrantz tower (1270) reflect to this day the power of the Hanseatic League in the Middle Ages. All this can be admired also from above with a ride on the Fløibanen funicular, that takes you up to the peaks of Mount Fløyen, from which it is worth walking down on foot: after crossing landscapes of rare beauty you will find yourself in the lively bustle of the fish market. You can take a walk amidst the wooden homes built on the side of the hill and along the long smau, the narrow passages typical of Bergen.

Take time to visit the original wooden church of Fantoft, built in 1150 but transferred here only in 1882. Along the shores of Lake Lille Lungegårdsvann you find many art galleries and a museum with a collection of paintings by Edward Munch. In Troldhaugen instead, there is the museum-home of the most famous Norwegian composer, Edvard Grieg, who worked and lived here in a small cottage on Lake Nordås.

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Norway

A holiday in Norway is a dream. A dream along a fjord, the most evocative and characteristic natural formation of this land.

The Geirangerfjord and the Nærøyfjord are listed as part of UNESCOs World Heritage Sites, but it's also worth mentioning the longest of all the Fjords, the 204 km long Sognefjordas well as the Hardangerfjord where cherry and apple blossoms can be seen on the cliff-side during spring.

But a Northern Europe MSC cruise also means experiencing the spectacular beauty of the Northern lights; while those of you who travel in the summer can admire the spectacular midnight sun, once north of the Arctic Circle. A cruise to Norway also means discovering the culture of two ancient populations: the Vikings, not just pirates and warriors, but merchants, explorers and colonisers who, for over three hundred years until the 11th century governed Scandinavia and the northern Atlantic: and then, the Samis, the natives of these lands, dressed in multicoloured clothes with immense herds of reindeer, who have lived in the deep North for more than 10,000 years.

Finally, watch out for the Trolls! Many of the places you will visit are named after these legendary creatures: Trollheimen, Trollstigen (with the spectacular Troll’s path), Trollhatten and Trollveggen.

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